Letting Go
by Naruto-Neko
Summary: Letting go of your first love is harder than it seems. And sometimes, it requires a metaphorical slap in the face to do so... NaruHina.
1. Chapter 1

**Letting Go**

**A Naruto-Neko original**

"Sakura-chan, please go on a date with me?" His voice was soft, pleading. You could see in his crystal cerulean eyes he was desperate.

"Naruto, for the last time, no! I won't ever go on a date with you! You won't ever be Sasuke! Leave me alone already, baka!" Her emerald eyes shone coldly, revealing no emotion at all. "Don't be such an idiot!"

His eyes flashed with hurt. Villagers' heads turned at them, surprised by Sakura's loud refusal. Before anyone could say anything, a flash of orange sped away, blonde head down. Unseen, light lavender eyes saw the whole thing, and burned with hidden rage. And now, the owner of those eyes finally released that anger.

"Oi! Sakura!" An unsettlingly loud voice called from across the way. It sounded hoarse, as if not used to speaking above a whisper.

"H-Hinata-chan?" The emerald eyes flashed with surprise, then hardened yet again. A small, dark head charged at the pink-haired girl.

"What gives you the right to treat Naruto-kun in such a way? I'd give anything to be asked on a date by him! How could you be so cruel as to bring up Sasuke, as well?" The normally gentle pale eyes glittered with blatant rage.

Haruno opened her mouth with a look of fury upon her face, but closed it again, reconsidering. Taking a second to think, her expression calmed. "I suppose I don't have the right. But who are _you_ to defend him? He could have defended himself." Villagers passed by, ignoring the fight occurring between the two kunoichi. Jonin watched carefully from a distance, making sure the two did not become violent.

"I can't just watch you torture him anymore." And with this final statement, the Hyuuga heiress turned from the stunned pinkette and ran in the direction of Naruto.

_Hinata… she didn't stutter even once… _This was all Sakura could think.

Uzumaki Naruto, hero to the Village Hidden in Leaves, sat alone on the roof of his apartment building. His head was in his hands, and tears were visibly dripping through the cracks between his fingers. Yet, while he was in turmoil, all his feelings for Haruno pent up for years had started to fade slowly yet painfully.

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><p>In the darkness that threatened to consume him, Naruto felt empty, cold, and alone yet again. From behind, a small yet infinitely bright light approached.<p>

"N-Naruto-kun?" A once again timid voice called from behind.

Light broke though and Naruto was free of the pull of darkness. He slowly looked up and the girl who was now timidly smiling at him.

"Hinata-chan? What are you doing here?" He asked in a cracked voice. Suddenly, Hinata sobered and what little color had been present in her porcelain face drained.

"I saw what Sakura did to you…"

Naruto's lips formed and 'oh' and he relaxed, staring at the moon that remotely reminded him of Hinata's eyes. He idly wondered why Hinata suddenly stopped stuttering. Silently, Hinata sat next to him.

"Why do you let Sakura-san be so horrible to you, Naruto-kun?"

"I don't know… I guess I've been so focused on her, I haven't thought about how she treats me." Hinata looked at him, shocked that he was so open with her. Well, then again, she wasn't too surprised.

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><p>Two young ninja strolled through Konohagakure. One was the village hero Uzumaki, the other, unexpected by most villagers, was the Hyuuga heiress. Even more surprising, the Hyuuga heiress seemed to be open, and was not stuttering.<p>

A pair of emerald green eyes watched as the two walked past, relaxed. Envy flashed fittingly in them, and the girl frowned. Without saying good-bye to her platinum blonde friend next to her, Sakura strode off toward them.

"Hey!" She called, not keeping anger and a hint of resentment out of her voice.

Hinata stopped and grasped Naruto's arm, also stopping him.

"Yes, Sakura-san?" Hinata answered calmly, innocently. Naruto looked at Sakura, but the lack of emotion in his eyes nearly caused Sakura to flinch.

"I just noticed how… happy you two are. I'm surprised." The malice was now obvious in her voice, but Hinata remained calm, feeling strong with Naruto at her side.

"Sakura-san, I know you must be sad that he doesn't… care about you anymore, not like he used to. But, you can only blame yourself. He's finally letting go…" And Hinata started walking, Naruto at her side. Neither looked back, but Sakura certainly looked after them. A single tear rolled down her cheek as she realized what she had done… to herself.

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><p><strong>AN: Hey, I think I'll make this into a short fan fic, but not a one-shot. I'll add to it as I get ideas. Please review! Watch for new chapters in the future! –Ana-chan<strong>


	2. Chapter 2

**Letting Go**

**A Naruto-Neko fanfic**

**Chapter 2**

After a month had passed, it was obvious even to those in the village most "out of the know" that something was up between Naruto and Sakura, and Naruto and Hinata. Naruto wasn't even looking at Sakura, passing over her as if she didn't exist anymore. And he spent nearly all his time with Hinata. Of course, the envious green-eyed girl watched every time they passed, talking like old friends. Naruto's arms were in the familiar behind-the-head gesture, making Sakura flinch every now and then.

"Hinata-chan, are you doing anything this weekend?" They had paused on their way their favorite spot to train. For the first time all week, Hinata felt flustered and unable to speak.

"N-n-no, Narut-to-kun. I-I don't have anyth-thing planned this w-weekend." Her face flushed bright red, and the old familiar sensation of light-headedness fell upon her. Naruto looked at her, concerned.

"Hinata-chan, are you OK? You're red and you look like you're about to pass out." _And you're stuttering again? Why?_

"I-I'm OK." Hinata took a deep breath to calm herself. "I'm OK now. Why do you ask, Naruto-kun?" She realized, though getting better, Naruto was still oblivious to many things, including her feelings for him.

"I wanted to… eat some dinner with you on Saturday…" Naruto braced himself for refusal and looked ready to dodge any punches thrown at him by the gentle kunoichi next to him.

Instead of the immediate refusal and beating he expected, Hinata looked at him ecstatically and nodded, unable to speak. Her acceptance, and her eagerness, didn't compute in his head at first.

"Are you sure, Hinata-chan? You aren't going to hit me?" Hinata looked at him, aghast.

"Of course! I couldn't ever hit you, Naruto-kun, outside of training." She frowned slightly, and murmured something under her breath he could barely hear. "I'm not Sakura-san…"

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><p>Seeing them together hurt; it physically made her hurt in her heart, an all too familiar feeling. How could she be so stupid, why did she have to hurt him so much it hurt her?<p>

Seeing them pass by the bench she sat on, every day, made her feel like the color of her eyes; green, green with envy. She had taken to sitting on the bench where Sasuke had abandoned her, it was the last sign he had cared for her. In the absence of Naruto, Sakura was trying to fill her emptied heart by dreaming of Sasuke. She was ignoring her friends, just sitting on the bench all day, hurting. And she was becoming lost in that hurt.

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><p>Naruto grinned to himself as he made his way to the Hyuuga manor. He was still surprised Hinata had accepted him. It was something… he never got from Sakura. It hurt to think of Sakura still. Being with Hinata, though, was like being in a sanctuary where things like that didn't matter.<p>

Hinata, over the course of the month, had changed a lot- she was finding confidence in herself being around Naruto, the epitome of self-confidence. And whenever she became flustered, which was gradually becoming less frequent, he was there to support her, as he had for Sakura, before she broke his heart.

When Naruto reached the gate, he was unsure what to do. There was a large space between the yard and the gate and the front door, and he didn't see anyone walking around. He stood there awkwardly for 5 minutes, deciding what he should do. Grunting slightly in determination, he started to examine the gate for some kind of signal when Hinata suddenly popped out of the front door.

The Hyuuga heiress, in her slightly embarrassed newfound confidence, had put on an outfit she wouldn't even have considered but a month before. She wore a navy blue dress, with a bubble hem and straps for sleeves. The hem came about a half inch above the knee. She wore simple darker navy ballet flats, and a silver chained necklace with a tanzanite butterfly pendant that brought out the color of her eyes.

Naruto opened his mouth to say something, but nothing came out and he just left it hanging. His cheeks colored a little bit as she walked up to him, also pink-cheeked. The lavender-eyed kunoichi opened the gate pressing a button and smiled hopefully at him.

"You like it, right? I feel strange in such a… pretty dress." Hinata flushed a deeper red, nearly crimson. Naruto coughed trying to get his vocal cords to work again.

"Ah yeah, of course I like it, Hinata-chan! You look beautiful!" His eyes widened, scared for a moment that he was going to be hit or yelled at, but remembered who he was with. He then blushed at his own compliment and his plain casual clothing. Hinata also blushed in response. He held out his arm, and they linked arms on their way to Ichiraku.

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><p>"Naruto! The usual, right?" Ayame saw Naruto's head first, but her eyes widened a little when she saw Hinata politely duck in. She winked surreptitiously at Naruto, but Hinata, being Hinata, saw it of course.<p>

"Uh, yeah, Ayame-nee-chan." Naruto tried to pretend she didn't just wink at him.

"Um, miso ramen, please." Hinata was quiet, a little shy at her first date, ever. Ayame nodded, and disappeared in the kitchen where excited whispering could be heard. Naruto smiled reassuringly as they waited.

"Hey, Hinata, I was really surprised when you said yes to go on a date with me…"

"Well, I was surprised you asked me on a date." Her response was cool, as if she had been planning on him to say that. Actually, she had been planning on it.

They chatted for a couple minutes before their ramen was done. It was comical to see Hinata's normal bowl compared to Naruto's, as his was about 5 times the size of hers and was obviously made specially made for him. It even sported his name along the sides. Hinata stared blankly at it for a moment as he consumed the ramen.

The blonde genin gulped down his ramen silently, while Hinata calmly ate her noodles politely. They were both trying to ignore the fact Ayame was watching them intently, head resting in her hands. Teuchi was trying to conceal his stares more than his daughter, but they still noticed.

By the time they exited the stand, Naruto's watch read 20:30, and the stars were out. It was an unusually cool, clear night for mid-summer.

"Hey, Hinata, follow me!" He motioned with his hands to follow. She held up a finger and pulled off her shoes. Right when the second shoe came off Naruto grabbed Hinata by the arm and pulled her, laughing. They started racing across the village, in the direction of the five Hokage faces.

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><p>They ran down the streets, narrowly missing villagers along their way. They were both laughing hysterically. Neither had felt so alive in a long time. The blonde led his date to a place rarely visited by others, on a ledge on the cliff where the Hokage's faces rest.<p>

From this ledge, there was an amazing view of the village, lit up in the night. There was also only room enough for two on this ledge safely, so they couldn't be disturbed unless the intruder wanted to die.

They both sat there, calm, for what felt like a long time, just talking about life in general.

"How can you be so confident all the time, Naruto-kun?" Hinata's face scrunched a little as she stared out over the village.

"Ah, I don't know, Hinata-chan. I guess that since I wanted to be acknowledged, I didn't have a problem talking to people."

"Oh…" Hinata's eyes lowered for a moment. Naruto's watch, glowing on his left wrist, read 21:02.

"Hinata-chan… most of being confident is telling yourself you can do it, even when you feel like there is no way possible it could happen." Hinata's eyes widened as her head flickered towards Naruto's surprised at his reasonable advice. It was the best advice she'd ever heard him say. He looked embarrassed to have said anything really wise. He was looking away from the heiress, hiding his red face.

"Naruto-kun, I…" She suddenly leaned towards him, and taking his advice, she told herself adamantly she could do this. She pulled Naruto to her and gently kissed him on the lips. Only, it didn't go as she wanted.

Naruto pushed her away, eyes wide. "Why- why did you do that? I can't! I just- I just can't!" Naruto yelled, face distorted by shock. Hinata sat frozen, unable to move. Naruto's advice had backfired on them both.

Naruto suddenly leapt down from the ledge, and sped towards his apartment, deserting his date. Watching him go, the girl exhaled sharply and jaggedly, on the verge of tears. A dark cloud passed in front of the moon, shrouding the deserted in darkness.

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><p><strong>AN: Hey, here's a nice, wonderful cliff-hanger for all you people! Don't you just <strong>_**love**_** me? Review, please! Arigato gozaimasu! –Ana-chan**


	3. Chapter 3

**Letting Go**

**A Naruto-Neko original**

**Chapter 3**

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><p>"Hinata-neesan, you must get up, you've been summoned by the Lady Hokage," Hyuuga Hanabi pleaded softly outside of her elder sister's door. Hinata had refused to exit her room for 3 days straight, not even accepting food or water.<p>

"G-go aw-way, Hanabi-imoutosan." The heiress mumbled into her pillow.

"Don't make me go in there and drag you out!" Hanabi was starting to get annoyed with her sister for being so weak over a boy. She should at least be able to get up for a mission. When there was no answer, Hanabi charged into the room, sliding the door open so swiftly it nearly fell off its track. She proceeded to pull Hinata out of bed, shoving her into the bathroom. "Shower!" A sigh was heard and a moment later the water turned on. After ten minutes, Hanabi was still outside the door, sitting. Hinata finally emerged from the bathroom, fully dressed and hair pulled back into a braid. Hanabi jumped up and started pulling her sister out of the Hyuuga complex towards the Hokage mansion.

Though some villagers stared at the unusually energetic siblings, most of them just continued normally on their way. Hinata's normally gentle, calm face was pulled into a slight grimace as she was dragged by her younger sister to the Hokage. Once they entered the mansion, however, Hinata started getting frightened. _What if Naruto is there? _Her heart raced and she felt she might die if he was there.

"Here's Hinata-neesan!" Hanabi shouted as she shoved her sister into the Hokage's room, slamming the door behind her. Hinata looked around, sighing in relief as she saw only Shizune and Tsunade in the room.

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><p>An unwanted visitor banged on Naruto's door. "COME OUT, BAKA. YOU HAVE A MISSION!" A familiar, harsh voice shouted. A voice that was taking advantage of the fact something had happened between Hinata and the boy.<p>

"GO AWAY, HARUNO!" His voice nearly cracked and sounded rough; as if he'd spent the 3 days he'd been hiding, not speaking, and possibly crying. The pink haired girl flinched, not expecting him to call her anything less than "Sakura-chan". Her heart wrenched strangely in her chest as she automatically ran away, moving on auto-pilot.

Naruto finally got up and looked around, no longer able to keep his eyes closed. His deep cerulean eyes scanned his room, taking it in as familiarity calmed him slightly. The room looked so real it felt surreal, in a way. Everything burned brightly in his eyes. He almost couldn't resist just touching the wall or his bed to make sure it was all really there, that he wasn't still dreaming. A loud gurgling noise erupting from his stomach woke him from his trance; he shuffled over to the kitchen where he found a sandwich that looked mostly unspoiled. He devoured the edible parts and got ready to leave.

As he walked towards the Hokage's office, he realized Hinata may have been called to the mission, too, and it was also possible his female teammate was assigned to it, too. He felt the blood drain from his face at the thought.

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><p>Haruno Sakura burst into the Hokage's office, with a look of distress upon her face. Hinata stood the side, looking down at her feet. The Hyuuga heiress ignored the rosette's entrance, however. Hinata's eyes narrowed as she stared at the floor, though she did not realize she was doing so. Tsunade eyed Sakura, giving her the look of disapproval, but did not say anything to her student. Sakura meekly went to the right of Hinata, and smiled weakly at Shizune. Hinata was secretly scared out of her mind- Sakura being on this mission almost certainly guaranteed Naruto's presence. She wasn't sure she could handle it, especially while having to deal with Sakura.<p>

They stood there for about 3 minutes, waiting for the third member of this mission. Footsteps were heard outside the door, and the door slowly opened. A blonde, spiky head popped out and looked around warily. Seeing the two kunoichi standing there, he almost passed out, but blanched further. He walked slowly in; his entrance so quiet Tsunade looked worried. His face was in pallor, and he was noticeably nervous. Hinata looked up at him, obvious hurt in her eyes but she held a straight face. Naruto looked at his feet as he passed, unable to hold her gaze.

"So… I have a mission for you three." Tsunade started, unused to not having to interrupt Naruto from his antics. "It's _technically_ a rank C mission, to guard an important, famous fortune teller as she travels to the Land of Wind, to Sunagakure no Sato, but I feel there is more to that," she tried to continue, but the looks on the 3 ninja before her made her stop. A look of anger passed before her face, but she willed it to disappear before she spoke again. "You three! You need to get over what is happening because this is serious now! I don't know what has happened to all of you, but whatever it is you need to get serious. You have a mission, now start acting like shinobi!"

Finally, all three looked up at her. They tried to look serious, though it was obvious in their eyes they weren't all there. Sighing, Tsunade continued, ignoring the teens. "You need to meet this fortune teller at the front gates. Kakashi won't be with you, since I feel you three can handle this. Sakura is the leader." Tsunade paused, thinking. "And Hinata, the reason why I assigned you to this mission is because I have a feeling someone is out to get this fortune teller and your Byakugan will be helpful for detecting pursuers." Hinata nodded and bowed politely before following Sakura and Naruto out the door.

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><p>Throughout the first day of the mission, the trio was able to keep up a façade of peace between them, to the point that the fortune-teller, who refused to tell them her name, knew nothing of the discordance in the group. In an unspoken agreement, the three decided to not mention at all how they felt and practically pretended to be mere acquaintances. Only once Sakura and the fortune-teller were asleep did Hinata say a word to the blonde who was abnormally silent throughout the mission.<p>

"N-Naruto-kun… I'm so s-sorry… for forcing m-myself on y-you…" The dark-haired kunoichi whispered. Hinata faced the brooding boy next to her, also on guard duty. She summoned every ounce of courage that she had built up in the short amount of time she had spent being close with the one she admires most, the one she loves. The one who stood right next to her, hurt because of what she'd done. It was all she could do to speak, let alone not stutter as she did so.

Naruto looked up at her, seeing the hurt that reflected back from her eyes as well, could not help but feel any anger/confusion melt away. No, when those eyes, pale lavender and moon-like, looked into his, he couldn't be upset with the girl who owned them. All in a rush, he got mad at himself for upsetting her by being upset himself- he had to have better control if that hurt her. "No, Hinata-chan… I'm sorry…" he whispered back. His hand clenched into a fist as he remembered what happened that night he ran away from her. "I… don't know how to say how sorry I am. It's not your fault."

The Hyuuga heiress couldn't believe what he was saying- she sort of expected him to say something completely oblivious. Caught off guard, she opened her mouth, but no noise came out. Her throat felt like it was in knots and her eyes stung with tears fighting to fall, but she counted in her head to try to calm down. At this moment, when she had reached 15 in her head, Naruto unexpectedly pulled her into his arms, draining her head instantly. She felt the familiar rush of blood to her face, but willed herself to stay conscious. Instead, she let herself relax, and her eyes closed against her better judgment. It felt like she was half in disbelief and half in sheer joy being in his arms. This is the boy she'd fallen in love with, and she'd watch him rise from the ashes of being hated and ignored, so much like her. She admired every aspect of him, even his complete obliviousness to certain situations. Hinata was so happy, tears fell from her eyes, not of sorrow, but of happiness.

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><p>Sakura was <em>not <em>asleep. No, she was wide awake, only her eyes remained closed as she heard her new rival, as she'd come to think of the Hyuuga girl, whisper an apology for something to Naruto, explaining somewhat why he and Hinata had disappeared for 3 days. Naruto, in turn, apologized, but did not reveal in any way as to what may have occurred between the two of them. Haruno opened her eyes a crack, only to witness the "number one knucklehead" do something completely unknucklehead-like; he pulled Hinata into his arms, and then the girl began crying with the biggest smile Sakura'd ever seen on her. This scene did not touch Sakura, though, it filled her with an unexplainable rage. She did not show it, but turned over, facing away from them.

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><p><strong>AN: Sorry it's been so long. Writer's block, ya know? Review please. I'm trying my hardest to write accurately for their characters.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Letting Go**

**Chapter 4**

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><p>Contrary to what Tsunade had thought, there was no hitch in concluding the simple mission. This left Naruto restless and frustrated, and as a result Hinata was unsure how she could help. Sakura spent the whole time in stormy silence. When they arrived back at the gates, Sakura took off immediately. Naruto didn't appear to notice or care.<p>

Hinata was the one to break the silence. "Do you think Sakura went to report to Tsunade, or do you think she went home...?" Her mental balance had been regained since that night when they apologized, so she could keep her calm when speaking again.

"Ah... I dunno." Naruto shrugged, and started to walk towards the Hokage mansion. "We might as well go to be sure, I guess." Yawning, he added, "That mission was so... uneventful."

Hinata looked at him pointedly, and he thought for a second. "...What? Uh... what did I do?"

"It was pretty eventful for me. I know what you mean, though, Naruto-kun." Hinata smiled. Naruto blinked, surprised she wasn't mad, then smiled back. He thought to himself how strangely good it was to be around Hinata rather than Sakura all the time. If anything, he felt safer.

They walked the rest of the way to the mansion in comfortable silence side-by-side. Hanabi saw them walking as she was out for a walk, and grinned at her sister (though unnoticed.)

When the couple arrived at Tsunade's office, she was actually working. The Hokage was glad to have a reason to take a break from signing papers, however. "Oh, welcome back."

"Did Sakura come by yet?" Hinata asked quietly but with confidence.

"No... did something happen with her?" Tsunade observed that Hinata and Naruto seemed to be doing better meanwhile.

"Uh, I guess? She kind of ran off once we got back." Naruto shrugged, not really wanting to go look for her.

Tsunade closed her eyes and leaned forward on her elbows. "Interesting. I'll send Shizune to check her home this evening, then. To make sure she's alright." She sat upright and opened her eyes again. "How did the mission go?"

"It was simple with no complications, Tsunade-sama."

"I see. You're dismissed." She shooed them away with her hand and smiled.

Once the young shinobi were gone, she sighed. "There is something wrong with Sakura, huh. I had noticed she didn't seem herself lately at the hospital, but..." She frowned to herself. "I need to get back to work."

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><p>"Hinata-chan..." Naruto said suddenly just outside of the mansion. She had started to take a step towards her home, but stopped abruptly at his voice.<p>

"Yes, Naruto-kun?"

"Would you be opposed to trying again?" He looked away, his face red. He kept getting embarrassed around Hinata, a very new emotion for him.

"What do you mean?" Hinata stared at him, trying to decipher what he meant.

"I mean... Hinata-chan..." Naruto took a deep breath and nearly screamed, "WILL YOU GO ON A DATE WITH ME?"

"A-ahh! Wh-when?" Hinata turned beet red as she lost her hold on her emotions.

"Uhh. Tomorrow night? If you want?" He looked at her through the corner of his eye, still unreasonably too nervous to look at her directly.

"Yes, of course!" Hinata bowed to him, and a passing woman giggled quietly in appreciation of their youth.

"I'll walk you home, then." Naruto faced her again and grinned widely. He held out his hand to her. Hinata looked at the hand blankly for a second, then realized what he meant and gently put her hand in his. They walked together to her house quietly chatting, all the while blushing.

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><p><strong>That Night<strong>

Shizune knocked politely on the door to Sakura's family's apartment. Her mother quickly opened the door, with a look of worry on her face.

"Yes, can I help you?"

"Hello, Mrs. Haruno. Have you seen Sakura today? She arrived back from her mission today, but her teammates said she ran off directly after that."

"No, I haven't! I was about to go look for her! I saw her friend Naruto walking around earlier, so I knew she must be back!" The mother was in a state of near panic and kept thinking of all the worst scenarios that could have happened to her only child.

Shizune inhaled sharply, surprised at Sakura's behavior. "Don't worry, we'll find her. Do you want to come with me?"

"Yes, of course!" The woman slipped on her shoes muttering that her daughter was going to get an earful once they find her.

Shizune and Mrs. Haruno were running down the street when Shizune spotted Hinata practicing in her front courtyard. Shizune realized that she could be a big help, and called out to her from the gate. Hinata turned and ran over to the concerned women.

"Yes?"

"Hinata-san, Sakura is missing. Can you help us look?" Shizune begged, with the missing girl's distraught mother watching Hinata from behind her. Hinata did not want harm to come to Sakura, despite her dislike of the girl.

"I will help you. I'll do my best." Hinata jumped over the gate (much to the distress of a nearby servant) and activated Byakugan.

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><p>Sorry about the long wait, guys! *bows* And then to give a sort of cliffhanger is mean, I suppose. But I DON'T CAAAARE~<p>

Well, I do, but I'm going to update more quickly maybe.

Virtual hugs to all who review. Unless you flame. Then virtual cold shoulders.


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